Printing mechanism



Oct. 12, 1943. LAMBERT 2,331,331

PRINTING MECHANI SM Filed Dec. 27, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 A4 /7 m/z/f/vra/e W 7 gzzwrzm H. L. LAMBERT PRINTING MECHANISM Oct. 12, 1943.

2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Dec. 27, 1940 Patented Oct. 12, 1943 2,331,331- rnm'rmo MECHANISM I Harry L. Lambert, Eniield, N. Y., assignor to Allen Wales Adding Machine Corporation,

Ithaca, N. Y.

Application December 27, 1940, Serial No. 371,888

9 Claims.

This invention relates to the printing of characters upon paper strips, and particularly to the printing through a plurality of inked ribbons upon a plurality of sheets of paper simultaneous- 1y by a common set of type. Devices of this type are useful in typewriting and adding machines where it is desirable to print simultaneously upon a plurality of paper sheets with a plurality of ribbons so as to make a plurality of ribbon copies of the typed matter.

An object of this invention is to provide improved means for simultaneously printing a plurality of copies through a plurality of inked ribbons,

Another object of the invention is to provide improved means for printing upon a plurality of superposed sheets, backed by a platen, simul taneously by individual, inked ribbons.

Another object of the invention is to provide improved means for printing a plurality of ribbon copies simultaneously, and also to provide improved means for feeding the sheets to be printed upon through proper printing relation with respect to a plurality of ribbons, the sheets to be printed upon, and the platen, with which the assembly of the superposed sheets and the ribbons in printing relation to one another and to the platen is facilitated. p

A further object of the invention is to provide improved means for printing a plurality of ribbon copies simultaneously with a single printing device, with which the assembly of the sheets to be printed uponand the ribbons and the platen may be easily and speedily accomplished, which will be relatively compact, which will not greatly increase the mechanism required, which may be readily adapted to various types of typewriter and adding machines without greatly altering their present designs, and which will be relatively simple and inexpensive.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent from the following description of one embodiment of the invention, and the novel features will be particularly pointed out hereinafter in connection with the appended claims.

a sectional plan through the ribbons at one end of the platen, illustrating the manner in which the ribbons are kept separate from one another in the printing zone; v

Fig. 4 is a rear elevation of the ribbon supports and guides, with the platen removed;

Fig. 5 is a sectional plan through the adding machine. with the platen, guard and ribbon unsectioned, the section being taken immediately beneath the top flanges of the ribbon spools;

Fig. 6 is a transverse sectional elevation through the parts shown in Fig. 5, the section being taken approximately along the line 6-6 of Fig.5;

Fig. 7 is a sectional elevation through the mechanism of Fig. 5. on a scale double that used in Figs. 5 and 6, the section being taken ap-- proximately along the line 1-1 of Fig. 5, but with the ribbon guard elevated to illustrate one step in the process of inserting the sheets to be typed upon, into proper printing relation to the ribbons;

Fig. 8 is a sectional elevation similar to Fig 7, but with the ribbon uard in its lowered position, which is the position normally occupied, which represents another step in the positioning of the paper sheets in proper printing relation to the platen and the ribbons, it being understood that the platen has been rotated in a feeding direction somewhat from the position shown in Fig. 7; and

Fig. 9 is a side elevation, on the scale of Fig. 5, of the spool mounting and driving means, with the position of the spool thereon shown by dash lines.

In the illustrated embodiment of the invention, the machine selected for illustration, and in which the improvements are incorporated, is an ordinary adding machine. It will be understood that the invention is also applicable, in its broader construction, to other machines-in which printing is done through inked ribbons, such as, for example, typewriters and cash registers. In this example, the paper sheets are confined in superposed, face to face relation against a platen ill of cylindrical type, which platen is mounted for rotation about its longitudinal axis by means of its shaft II which is rotatably confined in suitable bearings (not shown) in the platen frame i2. The shaft Ii is provided at one end with a knob I3 by which the platen may be rotated manually for line spacing, as usual. The platen shaft II is also provided with a ratchet wheel It by which the platen may be given increments of rotation by automatic mechanism controlled by the printing mechanism in an adding machine, or by automatic or manually operable line-spacing mechanism in typewriting machines. Such details are common in adding and typewriting machines and in themselves form no part of this invention.

Disposed immediately in front of, and extending in a direction lengthwise of, the platen, is a ribbon guard and guide or support l5. This guard I5 is guided for limited vertical movement in any suitable manner. In the example illustrated, the guard is provided with depending arms |9 which fit against faces of two plates I1 forming parts of the machine frame. Each arm I9 is provided with a vertical slot i9, which straddles the shank of a screw l9 that is threaded into the adjacent frame plate H. The head of each screw l9 confines its related arm l9-to the adjacent fixed plate Each plate H has an upstanding lug 29 along which the adjacent arm l9 extends, and each arm I 9 is further provided with a second vertical slot 2| through which extends a screw 22 carried by the adjacent lug 29, the head of which retains the arm l9 in contact with the face of the lug. The slots 9 and 2| of the arms II are so disposed with respect to the screws l9 and 22 that the arms I9 and ribbon guard l5 are permitted a limited vertical movement relatively to the two fixed plates Any other means for supporting the guard I5 and guiding it for such vertical limited movement may be employed.

In front of the guard is a combined ribbon and spool supporting frame 24 (Fig. 1) which is also independently guided for limited vertical movement in a manner common in machines of this type. This spool and ribbon supports has approximately parallel, upstanding arms 25 to the upper ends of which are secured members 29, the vertical arms of which extend into close proximity to the guard It. That edge of each vertical arm of member 29, which is adjacent the guard I5, is provided with a notch 21, and an inked ribbon 29 is disposed in the notches 2'! and stretched between these vertical arms of members 29 as shown in Fig. 1. A spool shaft 29 is fixed to and projects upwardly from the horizontal arm 99 of each member 29, each shaft having a threaded recess in its upper end. The ribbon 29 extends between and at its ends is mounted upon ribbon spools 2| which are removably and rotatably mounted upon the spool shafts 29.

Rotatably confined upon each spool shaft 29, such as by a downwardly facing shoulder on the shaft, is a sleeve 92 having fixed to its lower face a ratchet or gear wheel 33 by which the sleeve 32 may be given increments of rotation. A pin 34 projects upwardly from the upper end face of the sleeve 92 and removably enters an aperture in the lower flange of the ribbon spool which may be fitted over the shaft 29 so that the spool will be rotated from the sleeve 92 and the pin 94. Rotatably confined between the wheel 99 and the horizontal arm of the member 29 is a bell crank arm 39 which may oscillate independently of the wheel 93. The wheel 33 for each spool is given increments of rotation by the usual ribbon feeding mechanism, not shown. One arm of each bell crank 95 is connected by a tension spring 99 to the adjacent end of the guard l5, so as to urge the bell cranks 25 as indicated by arrows in Fig. 5. The other arm of each bell crank 95 has an upstanding end which engages with a side face of the ribbon 29 and tends to pull on that ribbon under the pressure exerted by the spring 99 in an effort to keep taut the portion of said ribbon between said spools.

A suitable frictional brake (not shown) acts drag thereon as usual in this type of machine. A second inked ribbon 99 has its ends connected to the same spools 9| along with the ends of the other ribbon 29, so that the corresponding ends of both ribbons will be wound upon the same spools in superposed, face to face relation to one another. The ribbons are also preferably of approximately the same length. The ribbon 39 extend from each spool to the end of the guard l5 and is supported in and guided by a notch 39 in each end of th guard, the ribbon then passing along that face of the guard towards the platen, and across the aperture or open window 49 in the guard at the same vertical level as the portion of the ribbon 29 which extends between the notches 21 in the supports 29.

Attached to that face of the guard towards the platen l9 are one pair of upstanding spring fingers 4| (Figs. 2, 3, and 4) which are connected together at a zone well below their upper free ends by a cross bar 42. The fingers 4| are secured at their lower ends to the guard l9, and their upper ends are normally spaced slightly from the guard as shown in Fig. 3. Additional fingers 42 are disposed between the spaced fingers 4| and secured at their lower ends to the same face of the guard, but extend upwardly into approximately the same plane as the free ends of fingers 4| (also shown in Fig. 3). The ribbon 29, after passing through the notches 39 in the ends of the guard l5, passes first between the guard and the fingers 4|, and then between the platen and fingers 49 at each end of the platen. This produces sufiicient frictional drag on the ribbon 39 to keep it taut in the zone which extends across the window 49 of the guard. It will be noted that the zones of the two ribbons which extend across the window 49 of the guard are disposed in face to face, approximately parallel relation, but slightly spaced apart.

Two sheets of paper 44 and 45 are fed from suitable rolls or magazines (not shown) in superposed relation to one another over a guide 49 (Fig. 8) and then between the guide 49 and the platen l9, so as to pass beneath the platen and towards the guard l5. These superposed sheets of paper are yieldingly urged against the under face of the platen by any suitable mechanism such as rubber rollers 41 (see Figures 6 and 8), these rollers being carried by a frame 49 (Fig. 6) which is pivoted at 50 to a pair of levers 5| which, in turn, are fixed upon a shaft 52 having at one end a handle or arm 59. Mechanism of this type suitable for confining the paper strips to the platen is very common in the art, and its details per se form no part of this invention. From the rollers 41 the paper strips or sheets 44 and 45 are fed toward the guard IS. The strip 44, which is in contact with the platen, passes upwardly between the ribbon 99 and the platen, and strip 45 passes beneath the cross bar 42 which connectc .the fingers 4|, and upwardly between the ribbons.

In order to facilitate the insertion of the paper strips 44 and 45 in the proper position with respect to the ribbons and the platen, the leading end edge of the sheet or strip 45 is advanced somewhat further than the leading end edge of the other sheet in starting them over the guide 49, as will appear from Figs. 7 and 8. As the platen I9 is rotated to feed the strips of paper end will be deflected upwardly thereby. When the guard I is in its lowermost position, as shown in Fig. 8,'the lower edge of the cross bar 42 is normally below the path of the leading end of the paper 45 as it approaches the guard i5, and it would normally be deflected upwardly by the cross bar 42 into a position between the platen and the ribbon 38.

This guard 15 is shifted upwardly into its upper position, as shown in Fig. 7, before the leading end of the sheet 45 is fed toward the guard, so that the lower edge of the cross bar 42 will be above the path of travel of the leading end of sheet 45 approaching the guard i5 in an upwardly inclined direction from the last rollers 41.-

This leading end of sheet 45 will thus pass beneath the cross bar 42 and strike the guard l5 and be deflected upwardly thereby, behind the bar 42, so as to move upwardly between the two ribbons. When the guard I5 is shifted downwardly into the position shown in Fig. 8, continued movement of the platen will feed the other strip 44 towards the guard, but its leading end edge will strike the cross bar 42 and be deflected upwardly thereby, between the ribbon 88 and the platen.

To aid in this separation of the two strips, the lower edge of the cross bar 42 is preferably provided with a flange 55 which extends generally toward the last rollers 41. This flange, when the guard I5 is in its upper position, as shown in Fig. 7, is in close proximity to the surface of the platen, and tends to deflect to the front of the cross bar the leading end edge of the sheet or strip 45 which approaches the guard, if the paper sheet should happen to cling or swerve somewhat toward the platen. When the flange 55 is in its lowermost position, as shown in Fig. 8, it tends to deflect upwardly and toward the platen, the leading end edge of the sheet 44 which approaches the guard, if such sheet tends to veer away from the platen after leaving the last rollers 41. The flange is thus shifted across the path of travel of the leading ends of the paper strips.

The guard I5 is yieldingly urged into its lowermost position, shown in Fig. 8, in any suitable manner, such as by springs 56 which are anchored in any suitable manner, such as to the ribbon spool supports 28, and extend through apertures in the lower edge portion of the guard l5. To facilitate lifting or upward movement of the guard 15, I also preferably provide a shaft 51 which extends in a direction parallel to the platen in a position between the guard and the platen, but just below the normal path of travel of the leading end edges of the paper sheets 44 and 45 leaving the last of the rollers 41, as shown clearly in Fig. 8. An operating handle 58 is provided upon one end of the shaft 51 to enable limited rocking movement thereof. Intermediate of its ends, the shaft 51 is provided with arms 59 which are fixed thereon and extend through apertures 68 in the lower part of the guard l5. Hence, by rocking the shaft 51 in a clockwise direction in Figs. 6-8, the arms 59 will shift the guard l5 upwardly from the normal position shown in Fig. 8 to the temporary position shown in 7 and against the action of the springs 56. As soon as the handle 58 is released, the springs 56 will shift the guard back into its lowermost, normal position.

A tear-off bar Si is secured to the upper edge of the guard [5 so as to bridge the opening or window 48, and this bar preferably has a serrated upper edge to serve as a tear-off edge. The sheets or strips of paper 44 and 45, after passing upwardly past the ribbons, may be torn oil whenever desired, by tearing of! the same againstthe serrated edge of the bar II. This tear-oil bar is preferably also made of transparent material, such as of a moldable, transparent resin, a number of which are available in the open market under different trade names, and one of which is chemically known as methyl methacrylate resin. By having the tear-oi! bar of transparent material, the entire zone of the sheet or strip 45 on which printing may have been done in accordance with this invention, will be visible after it passes upwardly above the ribbons 28 and 88.

Suitable printing mechanism is provided for printing through the ribbons upon the sheets 44 and 45, and while this mechanism may be of any suitable kind in which type bearing characters are struck against the ribbon 28 in a direction toward the platen, I have shown in the drawings the printing mechanism of the ordinary adding machine in which the typebars 82 are disposed side by side along the platen and are elevated individually by suitable mechanism (not shown) to selected heights in printing position in front of the ribbon 28. Each type bar carries a plurality of type elements 83 which are arranged in a vertical row and mounted for individual slidin movement toward and from the ribbon 28. Suitable mechanism (not shown) such as a hammer bail, is arranged to strike those type elements 63 which have been positioned in a particular horizontal row by selective elevation of the type bars to different extents, and drive the same against the ribbon 28 and towards the platen I8. This impact of the type elements 63 against the ribbon 28 prints the characters of those type elements through both of the ribbons upon the paper sheets, as well known in typewriters and adding machines.

In the operation of the illustrated embodiment of the invention, the inked ribbons 28 and 88, which are of approximately the same length, have their corresponding ends connected to the spools 8i and partially wound thereon, with an intermediate zone of each ribbon extending across the window 40 in the guard i 5, immediately in front of the type bars 62. The paper strips or sheets 44 and 45 are arranged at their leading ends in superposed relation to one another and fed downwardly between the guide 46 and the platen ill, with the leading end edge of the sheet 45 advanced somewhat ahead of the leading edge of the sheet 44, as shown in Figs. 7 and 8. The platen is then rotated in a clockwise direction in Figs. 7 and 8, which carries the leading end of the sheet 45 towards the guard l5. The handle 58 is rocked in order to elevate the guard i5 from the Fig. 8 to the Fig. 7 position, by which movement the flange 55 is disposed above the normal path of the leading end of the sheet 45, with the result that such leading end will pass to the front of the flange 55 and be deflected by the guard l5 upwardly between the ribbons 28 and 88.

As soon as the leading end edge of the sheet 45 passes upwardly between the ribbons, the handle 58 is released, whereupon the springs 56, assisted by gravity, return the guard I5 to its lowermost position, shown in Fig. 8, and then'the platen I8 is rotated further in the same direction. The leading end edge of the sheet 44 then passes between the platen and the ribbon 88, as shown in Fig. 8. To facilitate insertion of the paper, the handle 53 may, of course, be rocked in order to shift the rollers 41 out of contact with the platen, as usual in adding machines and typewriters. The type bars 62 are individually set by the adding machine mechanism (not shown) into diflerent elevations selectively, and then at the conclusion of the operation, those type elements 63 which have been arranged in a particular row along the ribbon 28 by the selective elevation of the type bars 61, will be struck and driven toward the ribbon 28 with sufllcient force to print from the ribbon II upon the paper sheet 45, and by the impression through the paper 45 print from the ribbon 88 upon the under sheet 44, thus making two inked ribbon or primary copies.

At successive operations of the printing mechanism, the spools 3| are given increments of rotation in one direction or the other, as usual in adding and typewriting machines, in order to feed the ribbons from one spool to the other, with suitable reversing mechanism operable at intervals to reverse the direction of travel from spool to spool. It will be noted that the unwound portions of the ribbons travel in different paths with different lengths, and the bell crank levers 35, serve to take up any slack in the ribbon 28 having the shorter path and keep that ribbon taut in the zone extending through printing position in front of the window 40 of the guard. After the desired amount of printing has been performed, the paper strips may be torn off along the serrated upper edge of the bar 6 I.

It will be understood that various changes in the details which have been herein described and illustrated in order to explain the nature of the invention, may be made by those skilled in the art within the principle and scope of the invention as expressed in the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a machine for printing characters upon a plurality of superposed sheets simultaneously, the combination of a platen mounted for rotation about its longitudinal axis, a pair of inked ribbons, a ribbon guard disposed to extend along one side face of the platen in proximity thereto but spaced slightly therefrom and mounted for independent, limited sliding vertical movement, said guard having means for guiding and disposing one of said ribbons in superposed, face to face relation to, but slightly spaced from, the other ribbon, and along said side face of said platen, and means for confining said sheets against the underside of said platen to be advanced therewith towards said guard and upwardly between the guard and platen, said guard having an angular depending flange running in a direction approximately parallel to the length of the platen, disposed below the lower edge of said guard guided ribbon, and extending toward the platen, said confining means guiding the advancing end edges of said strips towards said guard and upwardly to normally engage said guard above said flange when said guard is in its lowermost position, and below said flange when the guard is in its elevated position, said flange being disposed to guide a paper sheet striking the guard below said flange between said ribbons and guide a paper sheet striking the guard above it, upwardly between the platen and ribbon nearest the platen.

2. In a machine of the type for printing upon a pair of superposed sheets of paper simultaneously, the combination which comprises a platen,

a pair of inked ribbons, means for supporting said ribbons in superposed, spaced relation in a printing position adjacent said platen, a pair of generally parallel spaced apart plates, means for advancing said sheets in a direction obliquely and generally towards said plates, one of said plates extending outwardly beyond the other, and said plates being mounted for selective movement into two positions in one of which said outwardly extending plate alone is in the path of an advancing sheet in a position to deflect that sheet, and in the other of which the other of said plates is operable to deflect the edge of an advancing sheet, whereby the ends of a pair of advancing sheets may be selectively deflected and separated, means for guiding said separated sheets into printing positions in which one of said sheets is between said ribbons and the other of said sheets is between said platen and the two ribbons, and means for printing on said sheets through said ribbons and against said platen.

3. In a machine for printing characters upon a plurality of superposed sheets simultaneously, the combination of a platen mounted for rotation about its longitudinal axis, a pair of inked ribbons, a ribbon guard disposed to extend along one side face of the platen in proximity thereto but spaced slightly therefrom and mounted for independent limited vertical movement, said guard having means for disposing said ribbons in superposed, face to face relation but slightly spaced apart, and along said side face of said platen, means for confining said sheets against the underside of said platen to be advanced therewith towards said guard and upwardly between the guard and platen, said guard having a flange running in a direction approximately parallel to the length of the platen and extending toward the platen at a point slightly below a horizontal plane through the axis of rotation of the platen, said confining means guiding the advancing end edges of said strips towards said guard and upwardly to normally engage said guard above said flange when said guard is in its lowermost position, and below said flange when the guard is in its elevated position, said flange being disposed to guide a paper sheet striking the guard below said flange between said ribbons and guide a paper sheet striking the guard above it, upwardly between the platen and ribbon nearest the platen, a shaft disposed to extend approximately parallel to said platen, means carried by said shaft and engageable with said guard to impart thereto said limited vertical movement in one direction, upon rocking of said shaft, and means on said shaft by which it may be rocked when vertical movement of said guard is desired.

4. In a machine for printing characters upon a plurality of superposed sheets simultaneously, the combination of a platen mounted for rotation about its longitudinal axis, a pair of inked ribbons, a ribbon guard disposed to extend along one side face of the platen in proximity thereto but spaced slightly therefrom and mounted for independent limited vertical movement, said guard having means for disposing said ribbons in superposed, face to face relation but slightly spaced apart, and along said side face of said platen in the printing zone thereof, and means for confining said sheets against the underside of said platen to be advanced therewith towards said guard and upwardly in a direction between the guard and platen, said guard having a flange running in a direction approximately parallel to the length of the platen and extending toward the platen at a point slightly below the printing zone of the platen, said confining means guiding the advancing end edges of said strips towards said guard and upwardly to normally engage said guard above said flange when said guard is in its lowermost position, and below said flange when the guard is in'its elevated position, said flange being disposed to guide a paper sheet striking the guard below said flange between said ribbons and guide a paper sheet striking the guard above it, upwardly between the platen and ribbon nearest the platen.

5. In a machine for printing characters upon a plurality of superposed sheets to make a plurality of copies simultaneously, the combination of a platen mounted for rotation about its longitudinal axis, a pair of inked ribbons disposed in face to'face'and slightly spaced relation to one another along a side of, but slightly spaced from, said platen, means for confining said sheets against a portion of said platen and releasing said sheets as they approach said ribbons upon rotation of said platen in one direction, a deflector disposed approximately in the path of travel of the advancing ends of said sheets as they are released by said confining-means, and adjacent corresponding edges of said ribbons nearest said advancing ends of said released sheets, means for shifting said deflector across the path of said advancing ends of said released sheets while both ribbons remain along and in proximity to the same side of the platen and operable when in one position to guide an advancing end of the outer one of said released sheets between said ribbons, and in another position to guide an advancing end of the other of said released sheets between said platen and the ribbon nearest said platen, type mechanism operable against the ribbon farthest from the platen in a direction toward the platen, and means carried by the carriage and engageable with the deflector for shifting it between said positions, said shifting means having an operating handle adjacent an end of the carriage by which it may be operated.

6. 'In a machine for printing characters upon a plurality of superposed sheets to make a plurality of copies simultaneously, the combination of a platen mounted for rotation about its longitudinal axis, a pair of inked ribbons disposed in face to face and slightly spaced relation to one another along a side of, but slightly spaced from, said platen, means for confining said sheets against a portion of'said platen and releasing said sheets as they approach said ribbons upon rotation of said platen in one direction, a deflector disposed approximately in the path of travel of the advancing ends of said sheets as they are released by said confining means, and adjacent corresponding edges of said ribbons nearest said advancing ends of said released sheets, means for shifting said deflector across the path of said advancing ends of said released sheets while both ribbons remain along and in proximity to the same side of the platen and operable when in one position to guide an advancing end of the outer one of said released sheets between said ribbons, and in another position to guide an advancing end of the other of said released sheets between said platen and the ribbon nearest said platen, type mechanism operable against the ribbon farthest from the platen in a direction toward the platen, and means for yieldingly urging said deflector into said another position.

7. In a machine for printing characters upon a plurality of superposed sheets to make a plurality of copie simultaneously, the combination of a platen mounted for rotation about its longitudinal axis, a pair of inked ribbons disposed in face to face and slightly spaced relation to one another along a side of, but slightly spaced from, said platen, means for, confining said sheets against a portion of said platen and releasing said sheets as they approach said ribbons upon rotation of said platen in one direction, a frame, type mechanism on said frame for striking said ribbons to print on said sheets against said platen, and a guide for the ribbon nearest the platen for guiding that ribbon in a direction lengthwise of the platen past printing position of said type mechanism on said platen, said guide having depending legs engaging said frame for limited movement in a direction crosswise of the direction of travel of the ribbons through said printing position, while the ribbons remain along and in about the same proximity to the same side of the platen, said guide having a deflector portion of a platen mounted for rotation about its longitudinal axis, a pair of inked ribbons disposed in face to face and slightly spaced relation to one another along a side of, but slightly spaced from, said platen, means for confining said sheets against a portion of said .platen and releasing said sheets as they approach said ribbons uponmechanism on said platen, said guide having depending legs engaging said frame for limited movement in a direction crosswise of the direction of travel of the ribbons through said printing position, while the ribbons remain along and in about the same proximity to said platen, said guide having a deflector portion slightly below said printing position to aid. in threading said sheets through printing relation with respect to said platen and ribbons, through such limited movement, as the leading edges of said sheets advance in sequence towards said deflector portion, said deflector portion having its lower edge flanged downwardly and toward the platen in a direction generally tangentially thereto to facilitate deflection of said leading edges of said sheets.

9. In a machine for printing characters upon a plurality of superposed sheets to make a plurality of copies simultaneously, the combination of a platen mounted for rotation about its longitudinal axis, a pair of inked ribbons disposed in face to face and slightly spaced relation to one another along a side of, but slightly spaced from, said platen, means for confining said sheets against a portion of said platen and releasing said sheets as they approach said ribbons upon rotation of said platen in one direction, a frame. type mechanism on said frame for striking said ribbons to print on said sheets against said platen, a guide for the ribbon nearest the platen for t-on to aid in threading said sheets through 10 printing relation with respect to said platen and ribbons, through such limited movement, as the leading edges of said sheets advance in sequence towards said deflector portion, means yieldingly urging said guide toward one limit of its limited movement, and manually controlled means for moving said guide against the action of said urging means toward its other limit of said movement.

HARRY L, LAMBERT. 

